Saturday, January 14, 2012

Parenting and Pets

A parent’s job is never done. Not only are you responsible for your children, but if you have pets it’s important to give them a good life, too. Dogs need to be trained, walked, and played with. Cats don’t usually like to be walked but they do like to be played with and, believe it or not, they can be trained, especially if there’s food involved.

Speaking of training, it’s important to train children to be respectful of pets. There’s a great website called teachkidshow that categorizes the information according to the age of the child. The website for the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has some great tips on this subject as well. You will also find some great information on choosing the right pet for your family on the ASPCA website.

How you treat your family pet is crucial. As in everything else, you are the role model for your child. No matter what your pet may do—soil the rug, chew something they’re not supposed to, or the like, how you react will set the example for how your child treats the pet.

A happy, well-behaved, healthy pet is a blessing to a family. The unconditional love and affection that a pet gives back is so heartwarming. It’s worth the work, don’t you think?

Are you a pet owner? How do your kids treat your pet? Leave me a comment. I’d love to hear from you!

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